The Haystack documentary, is a real life investigation into 21st century surveillance in the UK and the Investigatory Powers (IP) Bill currently before Parliament.

In light of Snowden’s revelations in 2013, both privacy groups and our government agree that the laws surrounding surveillance need to be updated, but public debate and examination of the Bill have been shockingly limited on an issue that impacts us all. The Haystack explores whether the powers set out in this Bill will stop the next terrorist attack, and asks, are we willing to accept an unimaginable level of intrusion before it’s too late?

Background:

In late 2015 Scenes of Reason decided to take action and do what they do best; decode complicated topics for young millennials in order to stimulate debate. A team of four young female journalists wanted answers to both the simple and complex questions surrounding surveillance. Producer and director, Olivia Cappuccini states;

“At a time when the U.S are rolling back their surveillance powers, we need to be asking why the UK isn’t following suit, and instead pushing forward with an unprecedented Bill that is more intrusive and could seriously challenge our fundamental civil liberties in the name of national security.”

Scenes of Reason set out to present a balanced debate on the effectiveness, necessity and intent behind mass surveillance powers but found that it will never be a simple accept or deny conclusion. We interviewed a host of the biggest players in the surveillance space; ex director of GCHQ David Omand and National Security Agency whistleblower Bill Binney to name a few, and put the main arguments both for and against mass surveillance to them.